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A new look at cooking and home decorating...with an attempt to add more greens to the plate, more vegetarian options & hopefully lots of new ideas to explore

Saturday, November 17, 2007

Roast Turkey

Nothing can replace a turkey on thanksgiving. Turkey meat is relatively inexpensive and which makes it a very viable choice for feeding large crowds. You may want to consider turkey an option for an open house, tree-trimming buffet, or as part of a more lavish banquet. Some people feel turkey can be a bit difficult to deal with because the white meat tends to get dry as the dark meat rises up to a safe temperature- if this worries you simply carve off the entire section of each breast and put the legs and thigh meat back in the oven to finish cooking. *Please note some people love to brine their turkeys- while I sometimes brine chicken parts I find turkey takes up too much room, some kosher birds have been bathed in a salt bath and will help eliminate the whole brining, turkey in your bathtub scenario.

Take your room turkey and place it in a roasting pan with a v rack. In a small bowl mush the salt and pepper into the butter. Rub the butter all over the bird even underneath the breast skin, coating the breast meat with a good layer of butter. Stuff the bird with stuffing (any extra may be baked in a separated dish until warm). Add the sliced onions to the bottom of the roasting dish as well as the chicken stock. Cover loosely with aluminum foil. After 1 hour remove foil. Continue to cook until the breast meat is 165-170 and the dark meat is 175-180. (As I said I often pull the bird out when breast meat is 165 and cut off the two large chunks of breast meat then place the legs and stuffing back in the oven to continue cooking until the juices run clear). Total cooking estimated cooking time for a 12-pound bird would be 2 ½ to 3 hours.Serve with simple pan gravy.

About Me

About a year ago I decided it was about time to organize my recipes. I had my mom’s recipes on bits of paper everywhere. My mom was ill with breast cancer and shouldn’t be bothered with constant requests for lost muffin recipes. Those familiar recipes were the most dear to my heart because even when she couldn’t be with me I felt as though she were there. I filled my kitchen with scents of cinnamon, blueberries, roasts beef, pea soup, and other goodies.
I cooked and wrote down the recipes as often as I could. Now, a year later I have a collection of about 200 recipes and I am still cooking every week.
I was fortunate enough to study art in New York, Paris, Florence, and travel throughout much of Europe, picking up a love for food along the way. Working for a while as an Art Director in San Francisco, I spent every weekend exploring Napa Valley and all of its bounty.
I think the concept for this blog page should be a kind of “girlfriends guide to cooking”. A place where friends can look up my recipes (because who else will visit this site?) and an opportunity to exchange ideas….

my - where to find stuff list

Stage 1 of cooking - going to the market

I once remember finding a beautiful recipe for fresh figs- I planed it into my menu. The following day while shopping I realized that figs were not in season. Very frustrated, I had to go back to the drawing board. The opposite is true also. We are often told by chefs, usually residing in the sunny south of France, that we ought to prance about the marketplace looking for things which are in season, to cook for dinner. Obviously, they are not shopping with small, fussy, impatient children. My hope here is to compile a somewhat comprehensive list of things often in the market. Mention what they are and how they are used, and lastly the season in which they are found.

The Organic Cooks Bible, By Jeff Cox, The Bread and Circus whole food bible by Christopher Kilham, and Whole grains by Lorna Sass are my references here- I am not aFarmer but I am giving my best shot at helping you to navigate your way through the market and perhaps this may even help you plan ahead.

Amaranth-a grain like Quinoa, work well mixed in with soups and risottos- toast grain for a minute or two in the pot then add water cook as you would rice for 7-10 minutes- 1 cup dry grain to 1 ¾ cups water

Barley-barley, and pearl barley differ in the processing method the latter is sometimes less nutritious depending on wow it is processed. Nearly is the same grain only the outer layers fall off by themselves so it is similar to pearl barley but requires no hulling process. Cooking- bring 3 cups water to boil add 1 cup dry grain and simmer semi covered 40 minutes until tender (give or take 10 minutes either way depending on the processing method of the grain

Barley grits- sliced faster cooking barley for cooking add 3cups water, 1 cup dried grain and oil or butter, salt – add everything to pot- boil then reduce to simmer and simmer semi covered 16-20 minutes- I like to add cream at the end of cooking

Corn on the cob- boil it or take it off the cob and sauté it in the skillet

Hominy – in the corn family, I buy it cooked in cans in the regular grocery store, also known in Spanish as posole, look for it in both French style soufflés as well as many Latin dishes- if you cant find it at first with the canned goods try looking in the ethnic isle

Masa Harina- flour, which is used for making South American dough’s such as empanada dough-

Cornmeal-corn flour- this is just more of a flour texture as opposed to polenta that is slightly grainier

Polenta-cornmeal ground medium fine, there is instant and regular – one takes a bit longer to cook – served soft and creamy, or allowed to harden and sautéed or grilled- sometimes when serving it in its hardened state you will find recipes which use corn meal and corn flour in the same manner about 1 cup dry to 4 cups liquid- the liquid is milk and or cream or plain water- sometimes there is a base of sautéed fresh herbs or garlic then the polenta or cornmeal is added and stirred frequently over low heat for 20-30 minutes

Quinoa- called the mother grain of the Incas because it is high in protein- actually a seed but found in along with grains in upscale markets1 cup dry to 2 ½ quarts water (about, drain at the end to be sure as you would pasta but through a finer strainer) Bring to a boil and cook semi covered for about 15 minutes

Rice

Basmati, Jasmine, black rice/forbidden- rinse and then cook in rice cooker or pot as you would regular white rice- sometimes water amounts may vary check package instructions

Wheat-Wheat berries- often used in salads, soak grain in water overnight before use- to cook- 1 cup dry to 21/2 cups new water, after water boils add it to pan with grain, and place in the oven at 350 for 30 minutes

Farro- often used in Italian cooking-usually in soups or salad, 1 cup dry grain to 13/4 cups water bring to boil then cook semi covered 20-30 minutes

Bulgur- used in mideleastern cooking, 1 cup dry to 2 cups water- boil water then add bulgur, cook for 10 minutes on low while semi covered, more if necessary or until tender

Couscous- 1 cup dry grain to 2 cups boiling water- combine off heat and cover- allow to steam then fluff. Use in tagines or just mix with cooked vegetables or lamb

Farina- very important, my son has this often for breakfast it is a wheat cereal mix 3 tablespoons with ¾ cup water or milk and a dash of salt- microwave for about 2 minutes or until it thickens, you might want to add more grain as I do if it looks wet- once it looks like mashed potatoes when its stirred I add in a bit of cream and fresh fruit

Finding produce

All year-Artichokes, Bananas, bock choy, Avocados depending on type, carrots, celery coconuts, eggplant, garlic, ginger, kiwi, lemons, limes, button mushrooms, onions, parsley, snow peas, pineapples, baking potato’s, radishes, scallions watercress, leeks, mache or lambs lettuce, though cool weather radishes can be found all year, (seaweed- Kelp or kombuused for soup or dashi, nori used for sushi, dulse sued as a relish all found dried all year), tomatillo- grow year round in Mexico and sold here, watercress, plantains, citrus, grapes, tomatoes are sold all year but look for canned or fresh cherries or grape tomatoes in the mid to late winter- they are at their best in late august/ September and sometimes into October, melons are also sold all year but look for them in July- august, olives, papaya, pineapple, strawberries are found all year but best in June

These notes on chili peppers below are probably and editor’s nightmare. Please do not hold me accountable for precise information on chilies- Honestly I can barely grasp all the different names and find my self incredibly frustrated when I go shopping. Almost never, do they have exactly what the recipe in my hand calls for. I have made this list as more of a cheat sheet. If you would like absolutely precise info on chilies you may want to consult other sources, although people seem to often disagree on chili names and origins. To complicate matters the same chili from different regions may be renamed and chili-dried verses the same chili fresh may have two different names. Please use this list as I do. It is a helpful guide for shopping rather than precise scientifically correct information. This is to encourage you to cook with chilies rather than to loath or fear them, Best of luck.

Chili peppers-Anaheim-long narrow and mildAncho- a dried poblano, very hot- also found dried and ground- ancho and pasilla are often confused and sometimes used in the same saucesBird- also known as Thai chiliCaribe-yellow Caribbean chiliCascabel-small, round dark red, medium heat- sometimes found driedCayenne-red and hot- most often used dried in powder formCharleston hot-similar to cayenneCherry pepper- small, round, mild to medium heatChilaca- fresh form of pasilla, can substitute pablanos, long and narrow called big horns, fruity flavor, substitute poblanos if unavailableChipotle- a dried smoked jalapeno- most often found in a can with adobo sauceDe arbol- slender, often toasted and ground into powder look for them in Latin marketsFresno-small and green, medium to hotGuajillo- a dried, red chili, very hot- also sold ground into powder, very popular in us, often confused with cascabelHabanero-very strong yellow pepper, can substitute scotch bonnets for heatHungarian wax-greenish yellow, medium heatItalian Peppers- called Italian Frying peppers, commonly availableJalapeno-small green or red chili of medium heat, smaller version called chili moraJamacian Hot- very hot red chiliMazano-Found in Latin America, Texas but not widely knowMulatto-dark brown fruity chili used to make molePasilla (also often called chili Negro)-dark brown black dried chilacaPeperoncini- sweet and pungent often sold pickledPequin-Tiny, hot and smokey flavor, look for fresh or driedPiquillo peppers- small red Spanish peppers usually sold roasted and canned- substitute roasted red peppers from your Italian market if you can’t find themPoblano-Blackish green and used for chilies relleno, used as a stuffing chiliPuya- similar to guajillo, and used in a similar mannerSanta fe greande-yellow to red and medium hotScotche bonnet- similar to habanero in apperance and tasteSerrano- very hot little chili with green, red or yellow skinThai chili- very small and pungent chili, often sold dried and in big bags in Asian, markets

Tograshi-small, medium hot Japanese chili

Chili Negro, rojo, Amarillo, - special chillies, very hot people often substitute guajillos because they are hard to come by

Chili costero, rojoy, Amarillo- used in sauces, look in Latin markets

Chili chilacate-often used with anchos, sometimes sold as guajillo

Italian red pepper flakes- little jars of these are found in almost every pizza place in New York. I love to keep some handy in my kitchen because they will add heat to a dish with almost no fuss whatsoever. I suppose that’s why real chefs use other chilies instead- can you imagine being able to find everything you need for a dish in one grocery store? hah!

Edible other stuff-There are edible flowers, although, I consider these to be more in the category of food friendly garnish- for example lavender, Johnny jump ups, violets, squash blossoms for stuffing, lemon verbena, and hydrangea leaves to garnish platters with.

Nuts and seeds-Almonds, brazil nuts, cashews, hazelnuts, Macadamia nuts peanuts, pine nuts or pignollie, pistachio, walnuts, pumpkin seed, sunflower seed- most are found all year in the market and at their best if placed in a dry skillet or toaster oven and heated or toasted until just fragrant

Well, I am not about to try to tell you what to do here. I like to buy some organic products, especially organic eggs, lemons, limes, oranges, apples, peppers, celery, cherries, grapes peaches pears, berries, and all lettuce- if you are using the zest from citrus fruits this is particularly important.